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St. Thomas Times
May, 2013
St. Thomas Episcopal Church, 124 East Main St., Abingdon, VA 24210 www.stthomasabingdon.dioswva.org (276) 628-3606
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
Rev Hilary and David Streever Wed in Connecticut 1
From the Desk of The Rev. Hilary Streever 2
For Your Information… 2
Math and Music Figure in Schery Collins’ Daily Life 3
Children’s Chapel Winds Down for the Summer Break 4
May Bible Study Concentrates on Gospel of Matthew 4
Internet Links Offer More Examples of Christian Art 5
Dates to Remember… 6
St. Thomas Times Rev. Hilary and David Streever
Wed in Connecticut
Gale-force winds and rain provided the backdrop for
an otherwise cheery and radiant occasion as The
Rev. Hilary Camblos and David Streever exchanged
wedding vows at Trinity Episcopal Church in New
Haven, CT on April 12. Although some activities
had to be moved indoors, Rev. Hilary proclaimed the
day to be a success.
Upon the newlyweds’ return to Abingdon, Betsy and
Ramsey White hosted a reception in their honor.
While heavy hors d’oeuvres were on the menu, the
“icing on the cake” was the gift of a painting of St.
Thomas by local artist Kyle Buckland.
The congregation and friends of St. Thomas Episcopal
Church wish for Rev. Hilary and David a long, happy,
and blessed married life.
Page 2 St. Thomas Times
From the Desk of The Rev. Hilary Streever
Dear sisters and brothers in Christ,
The Holy Spirit is often overlooked in mainline Protestant churches, and the Episcopal
Church is no different. Though we recognize that God is a mystery, the Holy Spirit is the
particularly elusive member of the Trinity. We might even be a little afraid of the Holy
Spirit, for she is unpredictable -- you never know what she might do!
But the Holy Spirit is just as important as the other
two members of the Trinity. Represented by the
color red, she is fiery: igniting in us passion for God
and God’s vision; comforting and warming us with
God’s love; helping us leave behind our sins and
grow. The Holy Spirit dwells in us to sanctify us over
the course of our lives and into the next.
In May we will explicitly celebrate the Holy Spirit and
her role in the Church not just one Sunday but two!
On May 5, Bishop and Dorothy Powell will join us for
worship, at which time he will lay hands on candidates
for confirmation, reception and reaffirmation of
baptismal vows. Bishop Powell will pray for the Holy
Spirit to strengthen them, empower them for service,
sustain them, direct and uphold them, and lead them.
On May 19, we will celebrate Pentecost, the fiftieth day
after Easter when the Holy Spirit was given to God’s
people. Pentecost is the Church’s birthday, for it is by
the Holy Spirit that the Church is constituted, is
sustained, and grows.
These two Sundays, we will all be reminded of the
Holy Spirit and her role in our lives as followers of
Christ. I encourage you all to seek symbols of the Holy
Spirit in our church. Where do you see the color red?
Do you see doves in any of our artwork? Where do you
see flames or fire (i.e. candles)? Can you find holy
water for baptism somewhere? What do our hymns say
about the Holy Spirit?
Where do you experience the Holy Spirit yourself?
Grace and peace to you in Christ,
Hilary+
David and the Rev. Hilary Streever would like thank
the St. Thomas' family for their warmth of heart and
generosity of spirit in celebrating our marriage and
for the beautiful oil painting of St. Thomas'. We were
overwhelmed by the love and affection of all of you as
you welcomed us home to our church family. Special
thanks to those who organized and contributed to the
beautiful reception on April 20th. One thing is for
sure -- we at St. Thomas' know how to party!
The Rev. Hilary and David will be celebrating their
honeymoon
from May 21 through May 31.
For Your Information...
Where’d the Confession go? During the Easter
season (which lasts until Pentecost), it’s common
practice to omit the Confession. We were plenty
penitential in Lent and now it’s time to joyfully
celebrate Christ’s resurrection!
Bishop Neff Powell will make his visitation to St.
Thomas on May 5, at which time he will officiate at
confirmation, reaffirmation and reception of
several new members!
Those being confirmed: Becca Kelly, Karl Kindig,
Kat Latham and Joe Robinson
Those being received: Jenny Smith
Those reaffirming their baptismal vows: Ben Smith
Page 3
St. Thomas Times
Math and Music Figure in
Schery Collins’ Daily Life
By Marlene Buckles
Music and math—seemingly polar opposites—have
co-existed comfortably in the life of Schery Collins.
This summer she is retiring from her 40+ year
teaching career at Virginia Highlands Community
College, and continuing in her 40 year position as
organist at St. Thomas.
Why pursue a career in math rather than music? “I
was good at math but my first love was music,”
states Schery. ”I just didn’t want to be a starving
artist.” What is the connection between the two
disciplines? “I love structure—things like grammar
and puzzles. Music is a mathematical puzzle,” she
explains.
Schery’s love of structure led to music composition
as a complement to her music performance.
Through the years Schery has composed music,
including Virginia Highland’s Alma Mater, which
she, and husband David, wrote on a 6-hour trip
home from the beach. She also composed the
Gloria and Sanctus which we sing on Sunday
mornings.
In the past two years Schery has introduced the
computer as a tool in writing her compositions. As
she develops a piece, she says “I go to the piano,
figure out what note values I want, write those
values on musical staff paper, then I go to the
computer to refine it.” Schery adds that “It’s
rewarding to write a piece of music and then hear
the choir and congregation sing it.”
The computer has also changed how she purchases
anthems for the choir. Schery used to travel to
Charlotte and look through file cabinets full of
music to find anthems. Now she spends a lot of
time listening on-line to select her purchases.
time listening on-line to select her purchases. “The
internet is putting music clearing houses out of
business, because with the internet you can go on-
line, not only see the orchestration, but also hear
the music and have access to ratings of the pieces.”
Schery says that one benefit of having access to on-
line providers comes from the fact that choir
members can also use the computer to preview and
practice new anthems. “I never want to settle for
just what we have in our music library.” She
explains that using fresh musical compositions, like
the offertory anthem on Easter Sunday, are exciting
for the choir to practice and perform and for the
congregation to hear.
Schery admits she hasn’t had time to worry about
retirement from VHCC. She and David plan to build
a barn-like structure which will include a studio for
writing and for storing her music. She will continue
playing her flute, which she has done since 4th
grade, because it gives her peace of mind. “I prefer
to participate rather than watch or listen to music,”
she explains. She does want to write more music
for church, and might take some organ lessons.
And Schery plans to continue playing in the
Symphony of the Mountains and the Johnson City
Symphony as well.
Schery Collins plays the organ during the Sunday worship service.
Please see Math and Music on page 4
Page 4 St. Thomas Times
Children’s Chapel Winds Down for the Summer Break By Zoe Jackson
The Children's Chapel is finishing its last chapter
before the end of our learning year and the
beginning of summer!
The children have studied: Bible stories,
Christmas, seasons of the church year, Holy Week
and Easter, The Lord's Prayer, The Nicene Creed,
symbols of the Episcopal Church, and more.
Certificates will be awarded during church May
19th to children who have participated for five or
more Sundays.
We thank all those who have participated, helped,
or supported the Children's Chapel effort,
including Rev. Hilary, Jennifer Cling, Mary Tackney,
and the parents of the children.
Children work diligently during the sermon each Sunday.
The children proudly display the results of their horticultural
skills during the Easter Season.
Math and Music from page 3
Symphony of the Mountains and the Johnson City
Symphony as well.
She and David also play short programs for
receptions, weddings, etc., and she has also begun
playing the bass—and carrying it in her Honda Civic
“just for fun,” she says. Again mathematics and
music meet in Schery’s life!
May Bible Study Concentrates on
the Gospel of Matthew
Matthew tells us Jesus is the long awaited Messiah and the fulfillment of the Old Testament. Ashley
Stephenson, who will guide participants during this Bible Study, says that “we will study Matthew's Gospel,
chapter by chapter, seeking to understand what Matthew is saying about Jesus, looking at various political
and historical issues, translating certain words that might have multiple meanings, and examining, in detail,
the discourses and stories which Matthew presents. We will also follow the events that led to Jesus'
crucifixion and resurrection.
“We will also discuss what Jesus is telling us about sin, prayer, love, the end time, our relationship with God
and our duty as followers of Christ. In short we are going to academically study the Gospel of Matthew from a
faith perspective.”
Page 5
St. Thomas Times
St. Thomas Episcopal Church
276-628-3606
SaintThomas@eva.org
On the Web:
www.stthomasabingdon.dioswva.org
The Rev. Hilary Streever
276-451-8809
therevhilarycamblos@gmail.com
The Rev. Ellie Scofield
276-258-1640
novak-scofieldep@msha.com
Office Hours:
Tuesday 9am – 3pm
Wednesday 9am – 3pm
Thursday 10am – 12pm
Sunday Worship: 9:30 am
Children’s Chapel offered
Wednesday Eucharist & Healing Service:
9:30 am
Wednesday Bible Study:
10:15 am
Internet Links Offer More Examples of Christian Art
By Rhonda Kindig
Now that the Wednesday morning Bible study
series, “The Painted Word”, has concluded, those
of you with newly refreshed interest in great
Christian art through the centuries might wish to
take a virtual museum tour! Here are some great
web-sites:
For a 360-degree viewing of the world’s most
famous chapel, the Vatican’s Sistine Chapel, try
the following address. Your cursor will allow you
to look in every direction. It will take some time
for your computer to download the images, but
you will be serenaded with lovely music during
your wait!
www.vatican.va/various/cappelle/sistina_vr/index.
html
There is a virtual tour of the National Gallery in
London:
www.nationalgallery.org.uk/visiting/virtualtour/#/
central-hall/
A useful web-site with links to other virtual
museum tours, including the Louvre:
www.makeuseof.com/tag/visit-5-virtual-
museums-leaving-home/
It is also possible to view any painting (searchable
by artist’s name) in these two collections:
National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC:
www.nga.gov/collection/index.shtm
National Gallery London:
www.nationalgallery.org.uk/artists
For those who were unable to attend the
Wednesday morning series, you may speak with
The Rev. Hilary about a possible evening
scheduling of the class.
Page 6 St. Thomas Times
St. Thomas Episcopal Church
124 East Main Street
Abingdon, VA 24210
Dates to Remember...
It is the responsibility of St. Thomas to provide
volunteers to staff the food pantry the week of May
5. If you have not yet spent time with this
worthwhile ministry, you can find out more about
the needs by speaking with Temple Goodman or
Mary Ann Pickels.
May 13, Ecumenical Faith in Action will be holding
gardening classes at their site behind St. John
Lutheran church. Volunteer gardeners are being
sought to assist with this. If interested, please
contact Kat Latham for more information
(klatham@live.com). Gardeners of all levels are also
invited to help out in the EFIA community garden
on May 18 from 10 am until 2 pm (at the latest).
We'll weed, plant, water -- whatever the garden
needs! This food will go to support local families
through EFIA and Appalachian Sustainable
Development
Development. Contact Kat Latham for more
information.
May 19, Pentecost Sunday, will be our congregation
pot-luck luncheon following the worship service.
Soon you will find a sign-up posted in the parish
hall. Don’t forget to wear RED this holy day!
Joyce Bassham has returned to work at the Wesley
Clinic in Abingdon and is organizing a luncheon for
the clinic workers on June 7. She will be posting a
sign-up sheet in the parish hall for those able to
help with this ministry. A letter of explanation from
her is also posted.
Quite a few people were interested in hiking to the
Channels after the Rev. Hilary mentioned them in a
sermon last summer. Well, strap your boots on,
because Claiborne Woodall will be leading another
hike to the Channels for us on June 8! More details
to follow.
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